The invention is a building block of the type commonly referred to as a mortarless brick. That is, the building block of the present invention is stackable to present the appearance of a brick wall, but without the application of mortar between adjacent bricks and courses of bricks. It is particularly appropriate for applications in which the appearance of a brick surface is desired, but cost considerations do not permit bricking of a wall. Moreover, it will be appreciated that in many, or even most, situations, brick is not used as a structural support material, but rather for its aesthetic appeal. Therefore, it is desired to provide a low cost alternative to traditional brick wall construction, while retaining the appearance of brick.
A mortarless brick product is described in Canadian Patent Application No. 2,220,413 (Bouchard et al). In that patent application, a mortarless brick product is described as:
"A tongue and mortise block, for use in the construction of a wall wherein a plurality of like blocks are stacked in successive mortarless overlapping courses so as to define a wall face,
said tongue and mortise block comprising
two side ends spaced apart by
a top face PA2 a bottom face PA2 a front face and PA2 a rear face
said top face comprising a tongue interlock element and a declining face portion, said declining face portion connecting the tongue interlock element to the front face,
said bottom face comprising a mortise interlock element and a forward face portion, said forward face portion connecting the mortise interlock element to the front face,
said two side ends, said top face, said bottom face, said front face and said rear face being configured such that, when said block and an underlying, like, block form part of the wall and the bottom face of the block engages the top face of a said underlying, like, block such that the front face of the block defines a portion of the wall face,
the tongue interlock element of a said underlying block is able to register in the mortise interlock element of the block so as to be able to interlock both blocks such that relative forward and rearward displacement is inhibited, and
the front face of the block is vertically offset downwardly relative to the tongue element thereof."
It is observed that the "declining faces" of the Bouchard et al brick, which function to provide a secure tongue and groove type of fit between courses, also give the Bouchard et al brick a depth that approximates that of a standard brick.
The applicant has discovered that it is not necessary to approximate the dimensions of a standard brick to provide a mortarless brick with all of the essential attributes of a mortarless brick. That is, the applicant has designed a mortarless brick incorporating features that make it possible for the brick to have considerably less depth, and consequently less weight, while still having a "genuine" brick appearance.